By Rudy Ruitenberg
Feb. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Vivendi SA's pay-television unit Canal Plus and France Telecom SA's Orange will pay 668 million euros ($967 million) a season for rights to broadcast French soccer matches, the country's professional soccer league said.
Canal Plus will pay 465 million euros a year for nine lots, including two that allow it to pick a Sunday night match each week and the season's 10 best matches, company spokesman Antoine Banet-Rivet said in a telephone interview today.
The League de Football Professionnel auctioned the rights to the four-season period starting with 2008-2009 in 12 lots to maximize bidding. Canal Plus currently pays 600 million euros a year for most of the television rights to French soccer matches in a three-year deal that ends this year.
``Despite a difficult context, French professional football has increased the amount of its rights,'' the league said in an e-mailed statement late yesterday.
France Telecom's Orange won three lots, including the pick of the Saturday night match and rights to broadcast games to mobile phones. The company will pay 203 million euros a year for the lots, France Telecom spokeswoman Beatrice Mandine said.
Vivendi shares fell 10 cents, or 0.4 percent, to close at 26.55 euros in Paris. France Telecom gained 82 cents, or 3.6 percent, to 23.42 euros.
Attracting Subscribers
Vivendi Chief Executive Officer Jean-Bernard Levy said in November that Canal Plus would bid less than it paid in the 2004 auction for the rights, when it bid against Television Par Satellite. The Vivendi unit acquired TPS in January 2007.
Football is the main reason to subscribe for 40 percent of Canal Plus users, or more than 2 million households, according to a presentation by the league citing a September study by polling company Ipsos.
The league had split the rights into live broadcasts, ``fans'' lots that give rights to broadcast the matches of a limited number of clubs, ``multiplex'' and ``magazine'' lots of highlights, and mobile rights.
Canal Plus, in addition to the two premium lots, won the three fans lots, which allow it to broadcast all matches of the 20 clubs in France's premier league, as well as four lots that will allow the pay-TV company to show highlights.
France Telecom's Orange, in addition to the Saturday match and mobile rights, won a lot that will allow it to offer video- on-demand featuring highlights.
Tags: Vivendi Orange Win French Soccer Broadcast Rights
